I like being his chair. It was the first time we’d done some painting together and he really got into it, sitting with me for over an hour, mixing the paint in the dishes and splodging it on the paper. He preferred using paintbrushes over the sponges and we both got covered in paint — it was awesome.

He likes to play with the light switches on the wall, flicking them on and off with his tiny finger tip. It’s easier to carry him now as he sits on my hip and does a monkey cling-on. His little legs are very strong, especially when he doesn’t want to go in his car seat!

He’s mastered the art of grabbing your hand and pulling you where he wants you to be, usually to his box of toys or back to whatever fun stuff we were doing before you went into the kitchen to do something else. I find it impossible to resist him.

The day after we did the painting in the garden he found the box of paints and wanted to recreate the fun of the previous afternoon. We were about to head out the door so I pretended I couldn’t get the lid off the box. He didn’t buy it for a second. Later, we got out the coloured pencils and paper and he drew on the kitchen table (sometimes literally). He seems to have found his creative-arty side — his mummy and auntie are both thrilled. :)

He doesn’t say a recognisable ‘mama’ yet, but he does say ‘stee’ all the time. His dad is called Steve. It’s a word that’s frequently yelled in their house ;)

If you comb his hair he turns into zen baby, standing perfectly still. And he likes the hair dryer — he tried to turn it on with the laptop charger. Tech savvy already!

He says hello and bye perfectly. And his version of boing boing (for jumping on the trampoline, or bouncing on our knees when we play horsey) makes my heart explode.

One of my favourite parts of the day, and there are many, is splish splash time. He’s fearless with water (unlike me as a little kid). He fills his plastic watering can with water, holds it above his head and dumps all the water in his own face — he thinks it’s hilarious. I like washing his hair and his little bod. He is so scrumptious.

Two cups of sisters
Half a cup of blondie bear
6 tablespoons of patience
4 drops of naughtiness
15 gallons of love

This was, without a doubt, my favourite moment of August! (if you can’t see the video, click here)

It’s been a wonderful August break — 786 people on the blog roll, 5,435 photos in the Flickr pool (!!), 31 days of sunshine, rain, hurricanes, laughter, tears, and nephews. I can’t wait to do it all again next year :)